Let me tell you about human nature. If we’re not interested in something, we might think everyone else’s interest in it is funny.
That’s the way I feel about the Dennis Hastert/William Jefferson blog swarm. Here’s the short version. Congressional crook and Democrat William Jefferson was caught on tape taking bribes from an undercover agent. The genius hid the money in his freezer.
The FBI raided his congressional office, and as blacks sometimes do when in trouble, Jefferson implied that it was because he was black. Accepting payoffs had nothing to do with it, I suppose. Anyway, so Jefferson raised separation-of-power issues and refused to resign. [Clarification for those who don't follow links or the story: Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi asked Jefferson to resign his position on the House Ways and Means Committe, not his House seat.] Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (who has a “blog”), Republican, called the raid unconstitutional and demanded the return of the documents.
Naturally, people are questioning Hastert’s motives. Does he have something to hide? Yesterday ABC News reported that he was being investigated by the Department of Justice. Hastert and the DOJ deny it, but ABC is sticking by its story.
The Republican blogosphere is swarming all over the story. Bloggers are upset that Hastert appears to be defending Jefferson. Based on first impressions, I believe Republicans are up in arms because Hastert has unlocked his legs and gone public with an unpopular position: defending a Democrat.
I caught similar heat, but on a much smaller scale, when I blogged about impeaching Bush for his national security-breaching, immigration non-enforcement policy. Frankly, I don’t care about Jefferson or Hastert, but since blog swarms are fun, I think I’ll join.
What do you think of Jefferson’s criminal acts, ABC’s insistence, and Hastert’s and DOJ’s denials?
If you’ve blogged about it, trackback to this post, and I’ll link.
Bloggers: NZ Bear chastises ABC. Dan Riehl says ABC is “busted”. Glenn Reynolds is commenting and collecting links. More link-love at Madame Malkin’s. Wizbang, too. About the e-mail from House staffer Krista Cole, I’m on the same mailing list. Hastert denies he’s under investigtion and demands a retraction from ABC.
Frank at Common Sense Junction, a “student of history,” writes his congressman. Vent is all over it. Jim at Gateway Pundit says the Congressional Black Caucus plans to meet with Nancy Pelosi. To tell her off, no doubt. Why is it that black racial solidarity is good, but white racial solidarity is bad? Is it that slavery thing again? 
FullosseousFlap blogs about damage control.
James Joyner blogs on bumper stickers.
Commenter and blogger Fmragtops says:
I think you’re mis-characterizing the right’s anger at Hastert. It’s not because he is defending a Democrat, it’s because he is defending a criminal…What makes it worse is that he’s not just defending a criminal, but he’s defending the kind of criminal that furthers the stereotype that all politicians are crooks. And that makes him look like a crook.
Update (3:30 p.m.): New stuff coming down the pike: Hastert “may” sue ABC News, Jefferson’s seized documents sealed for 45 days…
Hastert “lashes out” at Justice. Wait a second…I thought they were on the same page? Now he accuses DOJ of trying to intimidate him? You know, after the FBI raid on Jefferson’s office, Hastert probably should have kept his mouth shut…
Glenn Reynolds says about Bush’s decision to seal Jefferson’s seized docs:
Could Al Qaeda have slipped mind-altering drugs into the DC water supply? What’s gotten into these people? Or has some sort of deal been cut? Whatever it is, I don’t think I like it…I keep wondering what I’m missing here. It’s too late for a big third-party push in ‘06, I think, but I’m pretty sure we’ll see one in ‘08. At this rate, it may be the only party left….
Now that he mentioned it, the water here does taste funnier than usual… 
Randy Thomas joins the swarm.
On a semi-related note, Bush’s amnesty-for-illegal-aliens bill passes in the Senate. More details.
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I just think the premise that a congressman’s office cannot be searched to gather evidence of a crime is ridiculous on its face, regardless of whether the target of the search is a Republican or Democrat. That is why I am angry with Hastert’s (and others) statements on how this is somehow the end of representative government and the start of some executive branch monarchy.
These people are not above the law just because they wear a pin identifying them as a member of Congress, and their congressional offices should not be thought of as a sanctuary where they can commit crimes without fear of being caught.
Democrats Are Funny, Too
From my side of the blogosphere, people are upset with Nancy Pelosi, who is echoing Hastert’s position that the raid was unconstitutional. (Her saving grace, perhaps: she asked Jefferson to resign, a request he refused).
In fact, I’ve yet to find anyone on the left or right who thinks the Congressional offices should have exemption. I tend to think that both the left and right are upset at Hastert (and Pelosi) for the same reasons: their implication that Congress is above the law.
I think you’re mis-characterizing the right’s anger at Hastert. It’s not because he is defending a Democrat, it’s because he is defending a criminal.
What makes it worse is that he’s not just defending a criminal, but he’s defending the kind of criminal that furthers the stereotype that all politicians are crooks. And that makes him look like a crook.
Memo to William Jefferson: Do NOT hide your bribe money in the deep freezer! For some reason that is HILARIOUS to me.
“The FBI raided his congressional office, and as blacks sometimes do when in trouble, Jefferson implied that it was because he was black.”
It’s hard to blame the NC stripper for blaming the white man, when it appears to be acceptable for black congressmen and women to blame the white man when caught.
( I have no idea of either congress person was consciously or the impossible to prove subconsciously stereotyping , but I do know that they blamed the white man without any evidence)
I’m glad Hastert is getting heat. It looks like large amounts of his credibility have been bulldozed.
New Orleans is laughing at you Hastert!
I am with Mark (comment #2). I think that all this support of Jefferson from both sides of the isle is nothing more than an attempt to ensure that this search procedure on Jefferson does not open a Pandora’s box for all the other members of congress.
“Accepting payoffs had nothing to do with it, I suppose. Anyway, so Jefferson raised separation-of-power issues and refused to resign”.
“Refused to resign”?
He has not been indicted yet! Come on LaShawn.
Didn’t you go to law school???? You know better.
You can read my take on this here:
http://mirroronamerica.blogspot.com/2006/05/republi-crats-angry-at-fbi-demand.html
Man, smart alecks really rub me the wrong…Perhaps I should have been more precise. Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi asked Jefferson to resign from his position on the House Ways and Means Committee, not his House seat.
Various luminaries venting their outrage that a member of The Club could possibly be treated in such a plebian manner included His Highness Frist, Queen Mother Pelosi, Regent in Exile Gingrich, and Prince Denny the Rotund.
The nerve, following so recently after proper deference was given to Royal Court Jester and Dog&Bear Baiter McKinney and Patrick, the Besotted Earl of the House of Kennedy!!
It is a pity that the Republican aristocracy, most particularly the Regent Gingrich, have so quickly forgotten their Contract with the People and have become as corrupt, arrogant, greedy, and aloof as the Democratic aristocracy. The people once believed they came as Noble Knights to clean up the moral pig sty the Democratic Earls, Barons, Princes, and even Kings had made of the Capital City and dens of Palace intrigue.
Indeed, the very first point in their Contract with the Lesser Beings of America was this:
FIRST, require all laws that apply to the rest of the country also apply equally to the Congress
How quickly just settling into power in the Capital City has made them no different than their foes.
Soon to come?
The Republican Royal’s head moneylender and courtier of supplicants seeking royal redress, Jacob Abramoff, rumored to be as well the Head of the K Street Bandits……has gotten Religion and will soon be confessing to the mobs of peasants who in the Palace he plied with jewels, gold, prostitutes, and junkets abroad fit for Princely fellows in the Republican ranks..
Jefferson, the Baron of the Subsea Bayou, wishes not to join the Duke in the Tower. Alas, like the Duke, he was too graceless in his corruption and made his plundering of the masses far more obvious than King George’s Cronies massive, but discrete and legal pillaging. A 6 million dollar ethanol subsidy, a Princely Favor, for a Prince Denny the Rotund Crony, beats getting caught with a mere 100,000 in your Feezer anyday.
As the Court Shysters are fond of saying, be it tobacco kickbacks, greenmailing the Land’s wealthiest industries, or oiling their slippery passage through the Palaces revolving door;
If one is to be corrupt, it is best to be so massively corrupt and steal such vast sums for henchmen, that peasants are unable to imagine it is happening from the sheer scale of thefts or realize how the likes of King George are beggaring their children to debts to Foreign Sultans, Emirs, and Oriental Despots to augment the looting of the land with borrowing from the usurers and moneylenders to further enrich the Richest few. Peasants can grasp sacks of 100 dollar bills in a Fridge, or a bought Duke cavorting with procured prostitutes on his benefactor’s plush free yacht staterooms. But they don’t see royals and their cronies becoming billionaire cell phone licensees, megamillionaire casino facilitators, and Titans of Torts sucking the blood out of whole secors of the economy – as the rapacious thieves they are.
However, the masses are beginning to wise up to the fact that the princesses and princelings of the Ruling Elite are showered with nepotic Court favors, shielded from sacrifice in war. And the masses are now aware the Ruling Elites deliberately left the Land’s Border’s unguarded so more easily exploited foreign peasants could come in in uncounted hordes to “do work no native peasant will do at the lowered wages the nobles intend to spread across all the peasantry so more gold can be skimmed into their Royal Coffers..
Hastert has drunk deep from the cup of imperial superiority. There is no “division of powers” issue at stake involved is this fiasco.
What we are witnessing is bantam roosters running amok because they have been doused with ice water. Their response is to scream that the sky is falling.
No member of Congress may lie under oath, obstruct an order or the court or defy a subpoena. Channel up the late Adam Calyton Powell for a full disclosure on this.
LOL… Thanks for being more precise…because I thought you meant the Congressional seat. And I have been following the case. Easy to get you going I see.
LaShawn…. i’ve been here for about 15 minutes, and you’re a favorite already; although i’m an independent and therefore do not agree with many of your views.
First found out about you in 05 on a C-Span panel with Jesse Lee Peterson, Shelby Steele, (The Cosby Show Guy…name escapes me), and one other Conservative. Let’s just say, it was entertaining to watch.
Putting your website in my favorites folder.
Thanks, Brian. I get fired up fast!
Trying to work on that…
The Cosby Show Guy is Joseph C. Phillips. I just reviewed his new book for National Review Online. Check back to find out when NRO posts it.
Thanks for bookmarking the blog, and welcome to LBC!
LaShawn, like Brian I am a registered Independent. I usually find the two party bickering humorous or tedious but I follow it because it affects me as a citizen. This development you are covering only goes to show how similar politicians on both sides are. More and more these days ideology seems a veneer that is only polished and displayed during election time or power struggles. To most political bloggers (and I’m not necessarily including you) this may seem untrue, but if you come at politics from the position that all politicians are influenced by the MPAA and RIAA to erode fair use rights through draconian laws and policies that enforce DRM, or that all politicians side with big business over consumers on most issues dealing with technology, politicians really seem interchangeable.
As for Jefferson, I’m still laughing that he kept money in the freezer. Gives new meaning to the term “Pay me in cold cash”.
Never underestimate the Republicans ability to steal defeat from the jaws of victory.
The entire Republican leadership (Hastert, Frist and Newt) all came down with loud voice on the wrong side of this issue.
Not only did they impugn Bush for doing something totally legal with a warrant on a real crook – they look like imperialist snobs doing it.
Am i allowed to be a Republican and still think our leadership is a bunch of idiots?
Mitt Romney, hurry and become President! We need some gray matter in the White House!
Could this all be a PLOY of Republican Leadership to distance themselves from Bush?
Maybe they are trying to get some separation from Bush by agreeing with Dems’ that he is acting monarchish?
If that was it, it was an incredibly STUPID move.
It is almost as if they WANT to lose the House.
Geesh!
Based on first impressions, I believe Republicans are up in arms because Hastert has unlocked his legs and gone public with an unpopular position: defending a Democrat.
Well, you are right! And I am one of those who is angry with Hastert for defending William Jefferson (the one whose last name is not Clinton). Democrats have a multi-billion dollar industry called the MSM to flak for them. Why is Hastert giving his services to them for free, particularly when he showed no signs of life on the Iraq war, the NSA surveillance program, Social Security reform and a host of other Republican issues? Democrats and the MSM will nod, say “Thank you,” and send Hastert to the back benches after November.
I doubt whether the ABC story is valid – it smacks of “inaccurate but true” all over again.
Harking back to the days when Charles I invaded the Parliament to arrest members, the usual practice is that the House and Senate quarters are more or less inviolate. (In the British custom, when the Queen arrives to open Parliament, her “lackey” has to bang on the door three times with his mace–and have the door slammed in his face three times–before it is finally opened to admit her.)
That is supposed to help prevent the executive/monarch from attempting to intimidate the lawmakers with the power of arrest–even for some crime which they may not have committed.
And that ’sacredness’ of the congressinoal offices may be why the money was kept there, instead of elsewhere?
I’ll admit, though, that if the FBI were really allowed to look into every congressman’s office, we might have to consider preparing 535 new spaces in our Club Feds. . .
Breaking News…
Bush supposedly just had the documents that were taken from the office of Jefferson sealed for 45 days…
What’s up with that?
Isn’t this great?
American fails to enforce its laws at all levels (the further you get from the Lord, the less you understand what the word JUSTICE really means)…
Coming to a town near you… ANARCHY!!
On a day when the CEO and President of Enron were convicted based on evidence seized from their offices, and on the evidence uncovered in the offices of Fast Andy Fastow that convinced him to turn State’s Witness.
Thanks for the historical perspective, Seahawk. But predating Charles I is the Magna Carta which places no one above the law. Not the King, not their versions of Patrick Kennedy, Teddy Kennedy, Duke Cunningham, Clinton, Gov’s John Rowland and McGreevy, or William Jefferson.
this just keeps getting farther and farther from a good outcome. it is rare that something so plain to so many at the citizen level is missed by the elites.
All Hastert had to do is state for the record that while the Legislative branch is coequal, its members are not above the law. He could have said he wanted to be assured tthat the FBI’s warrant was in order and not going to involve any legislative manner. Then he could have pointed out that he utterly backs the FBI’s efforts to root out public corruption, no matter if some memebr were attempting to abuse his office to hide evidence material to the case.
Instead we have this ‘charley foxtrot’ situation of assertions of non-existant privelege, pernicious leaks, and the case that started it, Jefferson’s video-taped corruption, sidling out stage left.
The House has deeply offended most Americans and its leadership seems to have not a clue nor give a fig.
It is appalling.
LaShawn, I’m going to register as in Independent tomorrow. Both parties are sickening! also, I would like to ask Jefferson’s stupid constituents why they keep electing weasels to office? and remind them that if it were them in trouble, they would be cuffed and hurled into a police car within a New York minute!
Rock on, Lisa. I don’t know how it works where you live, but because I didn’t register for a party in DC, I was put in the “Undeclared” camp. In other words, I’m not a registered Independent, either. I am unaffiliated. Also, when I first registered to vote for Bill Clinton, I didn’t join the Democratic party. From the beginning I was unaffiliated, and so I shall remain. – Admin
I guess the repubs are afraid of what Hillary will do to them should she win in 2008.
What is really funny, the more stupid stuff like this they do, the more they increase the odds of her and the democrats winning.
The libertarian minded blogsphere needs to pull a 3rd party candidate out its collective hat for 2008. Anyone who could win the repub or demo primaries is not going to be a candidate we can likely vote for without holding our nose. We can not go through another one of those elections.
Even if our 3rd party candidate doesn’t win, we can still get something better. Remember, the last time a third party candidate knocked a republican out of office we got the great ‘94 congress two years later. We need a repeat of ‘94, but perhaps we have to make them taste a ‘92 again first.
Many, many documents were removed from Jefferson’s files. Jefferson came out of the Louisiana machine. DNC/MSM waged a massive and successful campaign to hide Louisiana corruption by blaming FEMA. GOP has not publicized DNC control of Louisiana, implying they may have skeletons in the closet on the corruption too.
If the documents reveal embarrassing Katrina info, it would be no wonder for GOP to hide it as well.
I think there maybe is some substance to the theory that the House Republicans (led by Hastert) have reached a breaking point in their frustration with the White House over spending and immigration, and this is their way of hitting back.
Anger at Hasert? Can’t come up with any-too busy laughing. His part of it was a turf war-Legislative being intruded upon by Executive and Judicial. He should come to his senses soon.
Pelosi, on the other hand, is always laughable, and to see the CBC getting in her face for trying to do her job-laugh out loudable.
Jefferson? I can enjoy his being caught, but consider the case no laughing matter. Louisiana has been through enough lately. His vote, his political power is supposed to be representative of the people. I don’t laugh at corruption. I expect that if there is justice,Jefferson will be found guilty-if he is guilty-and sentenced.
As I’ve commented before, my attitude is so bad that I’ve reached a point of cynicism beyond the ability of being rational. I detest politicians (double-tongued phonies, every last one at every level). I used to be a die-hard advocate for my party of choice. There’s no truthful legitimate party to choose from.
(There, feel better getting that off my chest, again).
>>I think there maybe is some substance to the theory that the House Republicans (led by Hastert) have reached a breaking point in their frustration with the White House over spending and immigration, and this is their way of hitting back.>>
You’re kidding, right? Spending bills originate and are passed in Congress before the White House has a chance at them. Likewise the immigration bill. Granted that we know what Bush’s position on the immigration is, and that it doesn’t agree with the majority of the people, but it’s still Congress that writes the bill and passes it. Look at what the Senate passed yesterday – the White House had nothing to do with it….yet!
What you’re saying is that they should be mad at themselves…or maybe at their compatriots in the Senate…
What truly disgusts me is not that Jefferson sold his office, but that he sold it so CHEAPLY. Then, angain, perhaps I am mistaken in my disgust. Perhaps I should apply a more positive spin. Perhaps we should view this story as a harbinger of the egalitarian age in that the purchase of a U.S. Representatvie is now within the grasp of the everyman.
NEWSFLASH: Dan Rathers is B-a-a-a-ck. Now he’s ghost-writing for the CBSNews Inaccurate, But True Department.
File this under GOP, A Culture Of Corruption:
Yes sir, what we have here is definitely a Republican culture of corruption. It’s right there, as plain as the nose on my face.
Ciao
Re #43, h/t to Powerline for the newsflash. My bad.
Interestingly enough there may be a Niger – Joe Wilson – underground uranium trade angle to this.
Many links.
This may be like Abramoff – both sides of the aisle implicated. If I were to make a wild guess I’d say that both sides of the aisle are about equally implicated.
What did Twain once say? The best Congress money can buy.
However, this is small potatoes. Just wait till the rock covering drug prohibition is lifted. The corruption on that one will be near 100%. Police, legislatures, the prison/industrial complex, the medical cartel, etc.
Do they still teach alcohol prohibition in the schools?
When there are no photo ops—
No reporters—
No staffers or politicos around—
When there’s no-one to proclaim his innocence to–
When he’s sitting alone somewhere—
William Jefferson can’t be very proud of himself.
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